Neurosurgery
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Intraventricular thrombolysis speeds blood clot resolution: results of a pilot, prospective, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial.
Animal models and clinical studies suggest that intraventricular thrombolysis improves clot resolution and clinical outcomes among patients with intraventricular hemorrhage. However, this intervention may increase the rates of rebleeding and infection. To assess the safety and efficacy of intraventricular thrombolysis, we conducted a pilot, randomized, double-blind, controlled, multicenter study. ⋯ Intraventricular thrombolysis with urokinase speeds the resolution of intraventricular blood clots, compared with treatment with ventricular drainage alone.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Grading of subarachnoid hemorrhage: modification of the world World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies scale on the basis of data for a large series of patients.
The goals of this study were to use a large, prospectively collected, multicenter database for patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) who were treated between 1991 and 1997 to determine the prognostic significance of clinical and radiological factors for outcomes and to use those factors to develop a grading scale to predict outcomes. ⋯ Outcome prediction after SAH can be improved by adding additional clinical and radiological factors to the WFNS scale, albeit with added complexity.
-
The purpose of this article is to update the neurosurgical community on the expanding field of surgical robotics and to present the design of a novel neurosurgical prototype. It is intended to mimic standard technique and deploy conventional microsurgical tools. The intention is to ease its integration into the "nervous system" of both the traditional operating room and surgeon. ⋯ Breadboard testing of the prototype components has shown spatial resolution of 30 microm, greatly exceeding our expectations. Neurosurgeons will not only be able to perform current procedures with a higher margin of safety but also must speculate on techniques that have hitherto not even been contemplated. This includes coupling the robot to intelligent tools that interrogate tissue before its manipulation and the potential of molecular imaging to transform neurosurgical research into surgical exploration of the cell, not the organ.
-
Case Reports Comparative Study
Subdural patch graft technique for watertight closure of large dural defects in extended transsphenoidal surgery.
The most common postoperative complication of the transsphenoidal approach is cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea. If the dura is widely opened beyond the sellar floor and massive intraoperative CSF leakage is encountered, then the conventional packing method, in which the sella turcica is filled with pieces of fat or muscle, demonstrates a relatively high incidence of CSF rhinorrhea. For more reliable prevention of postoperative CSF leakage, we developed a method for watertight closure of large dural defects. ⋯ The subdural double-layer patch graft technique is simple and reliable for the prevention of CSF rhinorrhea after transsphenoidal surgery associated with a widely opened dura.
-
The pituicytoma is a rare primary tumor of the neurohypophysis. Although histologically benign, the location and vascular nature of these tumors can make surgical resection difficult. We present a report of two patients with pituicytomas and review the literature regarding treatment and prognosis for this unusual lesion. Possible histogenetic relationships of this tumor with other pituitary neoplasms are presented. ⋯ Pituicytomas are a distinct form of pituitary gland neoplasia that may recur if subtotally resected. These neurohypophysial tumors may contain a small subpopulation of previously unrecognized bcl-2-immunoreactive cells, whose role in the histogenesis of pituicytoma deserves further study.